The underworld gangster says he was falsely implicated in various cases lodged against him, at the behest of staunch rival Dawood Ibrahim, after the two parted ways following the 1993 blast.

indiaUpdated: Jan 29, 2018 23:03 IST

HT Correspondent Mumbai, Hindustan Times

Underworld gangster Rajendra Nikhalje alias Chhota Rajan. (AP file)

Underworld gangster Rajendra Nikhalje alias Chhota Rajan has alleged that he was falsely implicated in various cases lodged against him, at the behest of staunch rival Dawood Ibrahim, after the two parted ways following the 1993 blast.

He made this claim when the special Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) court, in a Monday hearing on the murder case of journalist J Dey, said the prosecution had evidence against him.

Rajan said, “I was with Dawood from 1983 to 1993... Thereafter, owing to collusion between the police, politicians and Dawood, I have been implicated in many false cases... After 1993, they blamed me for everything that happened in the city,” Rajan told the court.

The special court questioned Rajan over the evidence against him. “As per the prosecution case you killed Dey because he was writing articles against you,” the judge asked Rajan. To which Rajan said, “he khota ahe sahib (this is false sir).”

The court also questioned him over charges that he conspired to kill Dey and that he spoke to the murdered scribe as well. “The witnesses have deposed against me on the instruction of police and I have been falsely implicated in the case,” he said.